The youth and inexperience of the ISU volleyball team was evident this weekend when the team fell to Colorado and Nebraska.

ISU played fifth-ranked Nebraska on Friday night at the Nebraska Coliseum. The Huskers took the match in three games with scores of 15-4, 15-5 and 15-4.

Junior outside hitter Colleen Henican led the Cyclones with a team-high 11 kills and nine digs.

Freshman Stacy Nicks tallied six kills and a team-high three deflections.

Nebraska native Kelly Cizek got a chance to show off in her home state by notching seven kills and four digs.

Coach Jackie Nunez said her team is young and inexperienced, and that those factors were readily apparent this weekend.

She said the Cyclones’ only returning starter, Henican, has continued to play competitively and has been the most consistent and dominant performer.

Nunez has been “playing an enormous amount of youth” in the Big 12 matches in order to give the freshmen and inexperienced players the chance to become more comfortable in game competition.

She also said she has been playing the younger team members because ISU depends on the physical size of her freshmen players in order to contend for wins.

“Nebraska is a very good team and we learned a lot from them,” Nunez said.

Freshman setter Sara Walters saw some action during the Nebraska game, racking up 15 assists and one dig.

On Saturday, the Cyclones took on 23rd ranked Colorado and once again suffered defeat. The three- game match posted scores of 15-8, 15-4 and 15-9.

For the second time during the Cyclone road trip, Henican led the team. This time she recorded 16 kills and 10 digs.

Sophomore outside hitter Andrea Thul contributed 10 kills to the Cyclone cause and freshman middle blocker Jennifer Collins added eight kills.

Nunez said the team played much better against Colorado.

Although they struggled to score on Colorado, Nunez said the receptive offense was great.

Nunez noted that the three games took an hour and a half, which shows the Cyclones were playing hard and hanging in during crucial times.

Despite junior Julie McGrath’s 35 assists, the team’s “setting needs to continue to get better,” Nunez said.

ISU is not a top 25 team in the country right now, and Nunez attributes this to a combination of things.

Looking into the future, however, Nunez said she believes the team will sharpen their skills and play well because the talent and potential are evident.

Despite an 0-4 record in the conference, Nunez said the Cyclones are not discouraged.

She said the women remain positive and are “striving to get better every day.”

The Cyclones will take on Texas and Texas A&M this weekend at Hilton Coliseum.